Okla. Admin. Code § 595:1-9-3

Current through Vol. 42, No. 8, January 2, 2025

Section 595:1-9-3 - Records of the Department of Public Safety

(a)General. The Department of Public Safety ("Department") is a "law enforcement agency", as defined under the Oklahoma Open Records Act, 51 O.S. § 24A.1, et seq. This Act places restrictions on the access to and disclosure of Department records.

(b)Exemptions. Pursuant to Section 2-111 of Title 47 of the Oklahoma Statutes, records of the Department shall not be subject to the provisions of:

(1) Sections 305 through 317 of Title 67 of the Oklahoma Statutes or be transferred to the custody or control of the State Archives Commission;

(2) Section 590 of Title 21 of the Oklahoma Statutes; or

(3) The Records Management Act, Sections 201 through 215 of Title 67 of the Oklahoma Statutes.

(c)Definitions. In addition to terms defined in 47 O.S. § 1-101, et seq., the following words or terms, when used in this subchapter, shall have the following meaning, unless otherwise defined or where the context clearly indicates otherwise. Use of the singular term includes the plural, and use of the plural term includes the singular.

(1)"Agency" or "Agencies" means the Department of Public Safety.

(2)"Ancillary record" means any record that is routine in nature that identifies a transaction of public business, the expenditure of public funds or the administering of public property. Such records have neither evidential value nor being necessary for the transactions of the Department and has no informational value beyond the immediate use for which the record was created or received.

(3)"Commissioner" means the Commissioner of Public Safety.

(4)"Department" means the Department of Public Safety.

(5)"Investigative record" means all records pertaining to, documenting, or reflecting efforts to detect and investigate criminal activity. "Investigative record" does not include phone logs, radio logs, phone memos, records generated by the investigating division of the agency or other business records of the agency not reduced to an investigative report or memorandum. This definition applies only to these rules regarding record retention and destruction and, in no way, limits the rights of the agency to claim a record of the agency as confidential and not open to the public pursuant to 51 O.S. § 24A.8 or other statutes.

(6)"Personal information" means information that identifies a person [47 O.S. § 2-110 and 18 U.S.C. § 2725], including, but not limited to the person's:

(A) photograph or image,

(B) signature,

(C) social security number,

(D) residence or mailing address,

(E) medical or disability information,

(F) driver identification number

(G) name, and

(H) telephone number.

(7)"Record" means all documents, including, but not limited to, any book, paper, photograph, microfilm, data files created by or used with computer software, computer tape, disk, record, sound recording, film recording, video record, or other material regardless of physical form or characteristic, created by, received by, under the authority of, or coming into the custody, control or possession of the Department of Public Safety, or its representatives in connection with the transaction of public business, the expenditure of public funds or the administering of public property. Any document or other material specifically excluded from the definition of "Record" in the Oklahoma Open Records Act, 51 O.S. § 21A.1, et seq., shall not be considered a "record" under this definition.

(d)Records open for inspection. Records of the Department, as defined herein, other than records declared by law to be confidential, or any record or information not subject to the Oklahoma Open Records Act, or any record to which access has been denied pursuant to the Department's statutory authority, shall be open to public inspection, copying, or mechanical reproduction during regular business hours.

(e)Records not open for inspection. Records that are required by law to be confidential shall not be disclosed or open to inspection. In addition, the Department may deny access to law enforcement records, except where a court finds that the public interest or the interest of an individual outweighs the reason for denial and may deny access to records where disclosure is discretionary pursuant to state and/or federal law. Records not open for inspection include, but are not limited to:

(1) Nongovernmental personal effects;

(2) Records protected by a state evidentiary privilege such as the attorney-client privilege, the work product immunity from discovery and the identity of informer privileges;

(3) Records of what transpired during meetings of a public body lawfully closed to the public such as executive sessions authorized under the Oklahoma Open Meeting Act, Section 301, et seq., of Title 25 of the Oklahoma Statutes;

(4) Personal notes and personally created materials other than department budget requests of a public body prepared as an aid to memory or research leading to the adoption of a public policy or the implementation of a public project;

(5) Information relating to investigation of an act of terrorism, or a plan or scheme to commit an act of terrorism, including, but not limited to:

(A) assessments of the vulnerability of government facilities;

(B) details for deterrence or prevention of or protection from an act or threat of an act of terrorism;

(C) any response or remediation after an act of terrorism.

(6) Certain records pertaining to personnel, including, but not limited to:

(A) internal personnel investigation;

(B) examination and selection material for employment, hiring, appointment, promotion, demotion, discipline or resignation;

(C) disciplinary action that does not result in loss of pay, suspension, demotion of position, or termination;

(D) home address, telephone numbers and social security numbers of any person employed or formerly employed by the Department.

(7) Department records relating to training, lesson plans, teaching materials, tests, and test results;

(8) Policies, procedures, and operations, any of which are of a tactical nature or where disclosure would pose a risk to the safety of Department personnel;

(9) Within radio logs, all telephone numbers, addresses, other than the location of incidents to which officers are dispatched, and personal information.

Okla. Admin. Code § 595:1-9-3

Amended at 17 Ok Reg 3011, eff 7-15-00; Amended at 21 Ok Reg 2994, eff 7-25-04; Amended at 28 Ok Reg 2062, eff 7-15-11

Amended by Oklahoma Register, Volume 34, Issue 24, September 1, 2017, eff. 9/11/2017

Amended by Oklahoma Register, Volume 40, Issue 22, August 1, 2023, eff. 8/11/2023